Strangers in Tight Places
by gurl3677
Summary: In his rush to get away from the dead, Daryl trips and falls into the trunk of a car, taking down a stranger with him. They are locked up inside together until the hoarde passes. She's alone and finds herself wanting the company the group offers but they aren't so willingly to take her on. Can she convince them she's worth it? Story starts at the beginning of Season 2. Daryl/OC.
1. Chapter 1

_* Please Review! So I have been writing this with a friend of mine, Knyte. It was an idea that she came up with and we worked together to start to bring this story to life. I hope you like it.*_

Rebel popped open the trunk of abandoned car on the highway. She walked around to the back of it, pushing the trunk up more to start rooting through. She was looking for everything and anything. She needed new clothes, some new shoes, medical supplies and food. Always food. Anything would do. Canned goods, jerky, bottled water, anything that was still good. She needed shoes without holes in them and warmer things for the upcoming winter. She would swap out her old for the new. That way, Rebel felt a little less like she was taking things from others. She would take something but leave something else in it's place. But as she looted through the trunk, a noise from behind her forced her to whip around.

A motorcycle was weaving around the cars, making her drop to her knees. Live people. She hadn't seen any living people in months and the ones she had seen before, weren't the nicest. She wasn't going to take any changes on what type people these were, she wasn't going to let her presence be known to them, not just yet. Annoyance lanced through her. This was her looting area, had been since she found it. Rebel just hadn't had time to clear all the cars yet. She had a camp site in the woods, not far from the highway, and every day, she would come to the highway with two empty backpacks, fill them with things than trek back to her camp. She had a good stock pile but it never hurt to have more, like winter clothes and better shoes. Her frown deepened when she saw the man stop and an RV pull up behind him. Why couldn't he just be alone?

" What the fuck?" She snapped quietly. " Go away."

Rebel watched as a group of people started to pour out around the RV that looked like it was experiencing some car problems. She flatten her back against the car and watched as the people talked then started to fan out. The man that had the bike was slowly making his way towards her, looking through the cars just as she had done. He stopped at a few and opened the doors to look through them. His face was red with sweat keeping his hair plastered to his head. He was squinting with his mouth partly open. On his back was a large cross-bow and at his knife, a long knife. She knew better than to stay there, watching, but apart of her missed people, she realized, and she just wanted to watch them for a few minutes. Part of her wanted one of them to find her, part of her was scared they would find her. The dead weren't the only thing to be feared. She figured she could handle herself with one person, but she was sorely out numbered here and she knew it. Of course, they had women with them and two children. How bad could they be with women and children around?

The man was getting closer and Rebel decided there were a few choices she had now. He was going to find her, no matter what she did. She had waited there too long, had been too caught in up the living people's voices, listening to how the mothers instructed the children to stay close. If she ran for it, he would hear her and might come after her. She could duck down under a car and wait the people out or she could face him, ready to defend herself or introduce herself, whatever he forced her to do.

The man was within breathing distance when she started to rise up, her choice made. A whistle rang out, making the man swing around before he could see her. She glanced past him to see what the whistle was for. The sight coming towards them made dread and fear settle deep into her stomach. The dead were coming, not just one or two, but what looked like thirty or forty or maybe even fifty. Rebel cursed silently as bile threaten to make it's way up her throat. There was nowhere to run from them now. She had to hide. The man must have thought the same thing because he spun back around and started sprinting, towards her. He hit her hard, unable to stop himself when he saw her. They tumbled back into the trunk, with the lid slamming shut and him landing on top of her.

"What are you doing! Get off me!" Rebel hissed in a panic.

He was shifting around on top of her but there wasn't any room for him to move away from her. His forearms came to rest against either side of her head as he struggled for what, she wasn't sure. It was dark inside the trunk so she couldn't seen him and that only heighten her panic. She started to struggle and hit at his chest and shoulders with the heels of her palms. She tried bucking her hips in an effort to push him off her.

"Stop fuckin hittin me!" He snapped.

"Than get off me!" Rebel snapped back. His weight was like a tank as he pressed down on her with his legs tangled in hers. His stomach repeatedly hit hers as he panted in the small space and the heat coming off his skin and body was starting to make her feel like she was trapped in a furnace.

"What the hell you think I'm tryin to do!" He answered. He whipped his head from one side to the other, his hair slapping her in her face. Something dripped down onto her forehead and dotted her face.

"What the hell is that!" She asked as she tried to wedge her hand between them to wipe the liquid off her skin. "Are you bleeding or sweating on me?"

"It's hot outside and now I'm stuck inside this piece of shit, of course I'm sweatin! Now shut the fuck up 'fore them walkers hear you!" Being quiet had been what kept her alive all these months but having an unknown man on top of her, while she was trapped inside the trunk of the car was overriding her common sense.

"Get off me!" She snapped again.

"I'm tryin! Ain't no room!" He growled. "Now just calm the fuck down!"

And she did but it wasn't from his words. A sound reached them through the metal of the car. A groaning sound that made her grasp a hold of the stranger's sides. Her hands closed in on his leather vest as cold dread started to make it's way through her body. Both looked towards the door of the trunk. He had gone completely still above her, his body tensing at once. He shifted, making her legs part so he could fit against her body better. He was moving again.

"What are you doing?" She whispered when she heard his skin scrapping against the metal.

"Makin sure the trunk is shut." He whispered. " Might only take them a small bump against the car and the trunk will pop open if it ain't latched right. We'd fucked then. Ain't got room to get my cross bow ready or get to my knife."

"So is it shut?" She asked as fear replaced the dread that had been flowing through her veins.

"Seems like it. Now just shut up, would ya? Only takes one of them to hear us in here 'fore they all know it. Walkers ain't strong on their own but you get enough of them together and they can fuck shit up." He whispered. His head turned, sending his hot breath across her cheek. Rebel closed her eyes and shook her head. This was not happening...not to her. She couldn't believe she was trapped in the trunk of a car with a man she didn't know laying on top of her.

"So we just lay here?" She whispered.

"You gotta better idea?" He asked sharply.

"You don't have to act like a dick! You're not the one pinned down by a stranger!" Rebel retorted. Something hit the car, hit it hard enough that the car was jostled. Rebel jumped and threw her legs around his while her arms circled his waist. She cried out in surprise.

"Shut the fuck up!" He whispered as one of his rough, callous hands slapped down onto her mouth. "You want to bring them down on us!" Her hand shot up and smacked at his shoulder, making him lift his up from her mouth. "Stop fucking hittin at me!" He whispered in anger.

"Then don't cover my mouth!" Rebel countered; bringing her hand back to his side. The car was jolted again, making her tighten her hold on him and suck in her breath. "Are they trying to get in?!"

"Don't think so. Bastards mostly just roam around, hittin shit til they see food." He said. He had his head turned again. She could tell because his fast pants weren't hitting her face anymore.

"My name is Rebel." She whispered, almost shyly. His head turned, yet again, so his warm breath went over her skin.

"What?" He asked.

"My name. It's Rebel. If I'm going to have to lay under you for a while, I thought we should exchange names." He grunted as his breath left her. Rebel opened her eyes in the darkness and rolled them. "And now is the time when you tell me your name."

"Daryl." He grumbled after a few seconds before both of them fell silent.

They listened for anything and everything they could hear. A few times the car was hit on the side or the top as the dead bumped into it. Groans and moans pushed through to them, making her shut her eyes again and bite down into her bottom lip. They didn't know the couple was there. They were safe. The trunk was shut, Daryl had said so and she was going to choose to believe him.

Speaking of Daryl, his weight was starting to hurt her much smaller body. She shifted under him to on side then the next, trying to find herself a more comfortable spot and ease the pain she was starting to feel. Something was digging into her back as he dug into her body. His chest was heavy against hers. His stomach, waist and hips pressed down into hers and no matter where she moved, she could not find relief. And what the hell was in his pocket was so hard, it was starting to dig more and more into her thigh. She was sure she was going to have a bruise.

"Told you to stop fuckin movin!" Daryl snapped suddenly.

"I'm sorry but you're heavy! You're hurting me! And what the hell is in your left pocket?" Rebel asked.

"Ain't nothin in my pocket and never you mind 'bout that!" Daryl hissed down to her.

"Well something is digging into me and it hurts! Is it a rock?" Rebel asked.

"What the hell would I be runnin 'round with rocks in my pockets for?" Daryl asked.

"I don't know!" She said, starting to wiggle around again, brushing against that hard spot again.

"Stop wigglin! I ain't gonna tell you that shit again!" Daryl yelled in a rough whisper. What he had in his pocket jerked and pressed into her more.

"It moved! Do you have an animal in there!" She asked.

"Shut it!" He was gritting his teeth together; she could hear it in his voice. " Ain't no animal."

Realization hit her like a cold rush in the hot, small space. It wasn't a rock. It wasn't an animal and she should have picked up on that from the get go. It started hitting her too low on her thigh to be anything in his pocket. She had been too scared about the dead, listening too hard for them to realize that the hardness had been traveling up her thigh to its current resting place right where her leg met her pelvic bone. Could it be? No. No way. Rebel squinted her eyes so she could try and make out features of his face in the dark of the trunk. Slowly, as her eyes adjusted, he came somewhat into view. There was only one way for her to figure out what it was without asking more.

Carefully, she shifted her pelvis so it came in direct contact with the hard budge pressing into her. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly, clenched his jaw and sucked in his breath. Rebel's face exploded into a bright red blush she was surprised wasn't reflecting off his face. It was what she had thought it was. It wasn't a rock or an animal.

"Oh." Rebel thought she whispered but wasn't sure. She shifted again; brushing against it and making him react again. Another sharp intake of his breath and his own hips shifted, bring himself right the center of her. It was Rebel's turn to gasp.

"Ain't 'bout you! Just 'cause of stress. Ain't got nothin to do with you pressin up against me!" His words left him in such a rush, that Rebel had to doubt them. " 'Sides, it's your fuckin fault! Told you to stop movin but you just had to keep wigglin 'round. What the hell did you think was gonna happen when you start movin under a man? Ain't you got no sense!"

"Can't you keep yourself under control!" She snapped back. "We are in a life and death situation right now and you think it's the right time to sport a hard on!"

"I told you to hold still!" Daryl snarled, even then she wasn't listening. He was pressing hard against her zipper, making her wiggle more to try and get him away from the middle of her. Daryl's hand shot down to grab at her hips. "Stop it! Right fuckin now!"

"Stop pushing it into me!" She hissed.

"Shut the fuck up!" Daryl snapped. More wiggling and it shot a sensation through his body so hard that Daryl jerked and lifted up as fast as he could. The back of his head hit the top of the trunk before he slammed back down on top of her. His weight sent her breath out of her as he hit her hard. "Fuckin hell!" He grabbed at the back of his head with both hands, his face colliding with her neck.

"Are you okay?" Rebel asked. Her legs slipped from his as she brought her hands to his where they clutched his head.

"Don't touch me!" Daryl snapped, yanking away from her and slamming his head into the trunk again.

"What are you doing? Stop hitting your head!" Rebel said, her arms coming to rest against the trunk floor.

"Ain't like I'm doin that shit on purpose!" Daryl snapped again.

" Actually, you are, dumb ass!" She said.

Thankfully, the trunk suddenly popped open, making both of them jump and look to the opening. Sunlight started to pour in as fresh air washed over them in a rush. A hand grabbed at the trunk and thrust it open more. A man in a sheriff's hat filled their vision as Rebel brought a hand up to shield her eyes from the sun's angry glare. He was alive and part of the group she had seen Daryl with.

"It's clear, you alright?" He asked. Daryl came up on his knees in a heartbeat.

"Fuckin great." He snarled, starting to climb out of the trunk. The man reached down a hand to Rebel as soon as she was free from Daryl's weight.

"Still might be a few around so we should be quiet." He said, grabbing her arm and helping her to sit up. Her eyes shifted pass the man to Daryl as he stormed away without looking back at her.

"Thank...thank you." She said.

"Are you okay?" The man asked quietly.


	2. Chapter 2

_* Please Review! And thats for the warm welcome of this story!*_

"Miss, my name is Rick. Yours?" The man who helped her out of the trunk asked.

Rebel opened her mouth to respond when a series of shouts interrupted them. Rick's eyes shot past her and over the car before he started running towards the sound. Daryl spun, taking off as other members of his group followed. Rebel turned and started running as well. A short haired woman was crying and pointing into the woods while a dark haired woman was holding her.

"My baby!" The crying woman said. "Two of those walkers are after my baby!"

"I'll go after her, everyone stay here!" Rick yelled before he leaped over the railing and took off running into the woods.

Rebel slowed her steps until she was walking. She hugged her arms to her chest, taking in the group as they gathered around each other. She came up to them, keeping her distance to give them peace and space. Daryl turned to the side as if he was going to scan their area but his eyes hit her at the same time a little boy asked,

"Who are you?" All eyes turned and looked at her in question. Daryl's eyes narrowed down.

"I'm...ah...Rebel." She said. Her fingers bit down on her arms as tension started to course through her. She swallowed to try and control her nerves.

"She ain't no one." Daryl snapped. Members of his group turned back to the short haired woman as she wiped at her cheeks. And just like that, Rebel felt like she was dismissed.

"Well now, Daryl, that just isn't nice, everyone is someone." An older man said as he made his way towards her. "I'm Dale."

"Ah, hi." Rebel said, trying hard to ignore Daryl as he glared.

The group stayed around the guard railing, waiting for any sigh of Rick and the little girl he followed after, for what seemed like hours. None of them seemed to want to her so Rebel perched herself on the hood of a car, sitting indian style. It only lasted a few minutes before the heat from the sun warmed the metal hot enough to burn her through her jeans. She slipped down and started to wonder what she should do. She didn't know these people but wasn't ready to go by herself again. She had been alone for so long. It was nice to see people and hear their voices, plus she wanted to know if Rick could find the missing girl. She looked over to Daryl, who now had his back to her. He was standing by the guard rail with one foot resting on it and his cross bow out in front of him. He was leaning forward with one arm resting on his knee. He gave off the impression that he was relaxed but she was sure he was ready to spring into action if the need rose.

She tilted her head and shrugged to herself as she started to take him in completely. His upper body was covered in a crudely stitched together leather vest that sported angel wings on the back. The sight of those wings made her want to laugh. He seemed about as far from an angel as he could be without being a demon. His arms were tan, telling her that they had been on road and in the sun for a while. Streaks of dirt and glistening sweat were down those well build arms. His upper body looked strong and his biceps seemed tight. She continued to glide her eyes down his body to his ass where it rested inside a pair of dark grey cargo pants. The left back pocket had had a hole in it at one time but now was covered by a patch from a flannel shirt. With much effort, she continued looking down him until she came to his well worn boots.

"There's Rick!" The dark haired woman announced. The group came alive as Rick emerged from the woods, looking hot, sweaty and tired. His shirt was plastered to his chest with a ring of sweat around the collar and under both arms. His face was red and sad.

"Did you find her?" The worried mother asked.

"She didn't come back? I made her hide and told her to come back while I led the walkers away." Rick said, trudging up the hill towards them. A fresh round of tears started from the mother and quickly a search party was arranged, with the group forgetting about Rebel. Daryl and Rick would lead since Rick announced Daryl was the best tracker of the group. Rebel cleared her throat, she could help here. She wanted to help. No child should be left in the woods alone, not before the world died and not now.

"I'd like to help." She spoke up. The group turned, almost as one, and with so many eyes looking at her, Rebel felt herself shrink back. Rick started towards her as Daryl sent her daggers with his eyes. "I mean, I know these woods like the back of my hand. I know all the hiding spots she could be using."

"And you'd help us?" Rick asked.

"Yeah. The woods can be confusing." Rebel said, ignoring Daryl's eyes and the dark look on his face. "It wouldn't do your group any good if more of you got lost." She said.

"Do you have a weapon?" Rick asked.

"Ah, no." She said with a shake of her head. Rick glanced down at a gun strapped to his side then back at her, as if he was sizing her up, fighting himself on wanting to give the stranger a gun so Rebel held up her hands to make up his mind for him. "And I don't want one either. Trust me when I say this, it's safer for every one if I don't have one. I never learned how to shoot."

" You been running around out here without a gun?" The big black man asked.

"Begging your pardon but can I ask how you managed to live this long with no weapons?" Dale asked.

"Fuckin stupid if you ask me." Daryl snapped, making her look over to him. "Who runs around without a weapon?"

"You don't always need a weapon to survive." Rebel shot back. "They are slow and sometimes all you have to be is quick and quiet to get away from them." And quick and quiet was something Rebel was good at. She hadn't killed a single walker to date. She had hidden herself away, moving under the cover of darkness sometimes. She had climbed trees and stayed perched up as high as she could, watching them pass her. Maybe it was the coward's way to deal with them, but it had kept her alive when others had fallen. She wasn't going to let anyone, not even Daryl, make her feel weak or stupid because she didn't have a gun.

"Okay, here's what we are going to do, Daryl, Shane, Glenn, Rebel and I will head into the woods to look for Sophia. The rest of you, go through the cars, looking for anything useable and keep a eye out in case she goes out of the woods." Rick said.

Daryl and Rick took the lead with Rebel in the middle and Glenn and Shane behind her. Rebel wanted to help find the little girl and she was tired of being alone but part of her wasn't sure how much interaction she wanted with the group. And now she was starting to think that coming out into the woods with the strange men was stupid. She was growing uncomfortable with being the middle of them all. If there wasn't a missing kid, she wouldn't have done it, she told herself. All she could think about was how scared the child had to be. Rebel was an adult and she got scared out there. She repeated that thought over and over to keep herself calm.

Quietly the group moved with every one's eyes open and taking things in. Rick was going to show them when he stashed Sophia then let Daryl try and track her steps with Rebel pointing out places she knew the little girl could hide. Rebel was impressed with how the men moved. They worked like a unit, watching each other's backs and moving based on body language and silent cues they gave each other. They must have been together a long time and that knowledge was sparking hope inside her. Maybe they wouldn't mind it if she joined them, maybe she wouldn't mind if she joined them. Because being alone was becoming overwhelming for her.

Rick led them to a stream bank that Rebel knew well. It was a stream she used to bath herself after a hard rains when the stream would swell and she, herself, had hid out in the same overturned tree roots that Rick said he had placed Sophia. Daryl looked through the mud, finding little footprints and following them up the small bank. Glenn and Shane stayed on the bank as a lookout while Rick, Daryl, and Rebel stood in the ankle deep water.

"There are a couple of small trees in the area that she might have been able to climb and hide in." Rebel said.

"Don't think we should waste our time lookin in trees." Daryl said, slowly walking up the bank while staring at the mud steps. "Got fresh tracks right here. They should lead us right to her."

"Alright, we will follow them until Daryl can't see them anymore then Rebel can show us her hiding places." Rick said. He climbed up the bank then reached his hand down to her.

"Oh, thanks but I can manage." She said. At least Daryl, and she suspected Shane, thought she was weak because she couldn't fire a weapon so she needed to show them she was anything but. In her own mind, the fact that she was alive when so many weren't, should have told them she was strong. Rebel made a grab for some roots and pulled herself up as Rick pulled his hand back.

Glenn and Shane decided to search the woods on their own so that left Rick and Rebel following behind Daryl. Silently they followed the steps that had been pressed into the soft ground. Slowly they crept through the woods with nothing but the heat and the sounds of the insects around them. Sweat started a slow trickle down the back of her neck and made her hitch her head slightly to the side. She reached up to wipe the wetness away. She would never get used to sweating that much.

"Did we lose the trail?" Rick asked.

"No. Tracks are there, just faint." Daryl said quietly. He pointed with his left hand, index finger extended. "See them?"

Rebel peered over Rick's shoulder and squinted. She couldn't see anything but wasn't going to say that. She had already pissed the redneck off somehow and wasn't looking to do it again, not when she was in the woods with him. Something told her that she is said she couldn't see anything, cast any doubt of what he was saying, he'd blow up on her. She listened as they spoke to each other but she took a few steps away from them. She looked around to figure out where she was and where the hiding spots around them could be.

"You know of any places she could have went around here?" Rick asked, looking back at her. Rebel frowned but nodded. Daryl glanced over his shoulder then went back to studying the tracks.

"Up here a little ways is a small cave. It doesn't really go back far but if she found it, she could be hiding out there. Any of those things walking by wouldn't know to look inside it. It's very dark. I have been in it a time or two." Rebel said. "It's just right up here, on the right."

"She ain't there." Daryl said, still at his crouched down position.

"How do you know?" Rebel asked. Daryl raised his head up to scan the woods.

"Tracks lead off to the left. Best to keep followin them." He said as he stood up then started walking again, not caring if the other two were following him or not.

The rest of the day they searched the woods. They followed the tracks until Daryl couldn't pick them up anymore then looked through hiding places Rebel showed them. They searched until right before the sun started to set, but there was nothing. Rebel's stomach started to hurt as the highway came back into view. The mother, Carol she had leaned was her name, was standing by the guard rail with her arms crossed over her chest. Telling her they hadn't found Sophia was going to hurt and Rebel was not good with other people's emotions. She didn't know what to say or how to handle it when people got upset, besides, she didn't know them and wanted to give them some privacy for this so she stayed back as Carol had a melt down when Rick told her the news.

Carol was led away and taken into the RV as she cried loudly. Rebel leaned against a car, watching other the people hugged her and tried to comfort her. A small pang of pain went through Rebel. How nice it must be to have people care for you like that. She wouldn't know. Even before the end of the world she had been alone, growing up in foster care without anyone who really cared about her. As an adult, she had had trouble making friends and even more trouble with men and relationships.

"Thank you for helping us." Rick said when he walked up to her.

"Yeah, no problem." Rebel said. Her eyes shifted past Rick to the hunter who was messing around with one of his arrows as he stood a few yards away.

"I'd ask you to stay with us but we have a hard enough time taking care of our own." Rick said, making her look back at him. The sadness that sliced through her, shocked her. She hadn't realized how much she had been hoping he'd ask her to join them.

"Oh yeah, yeah, that's okay. I have a place in the woods so I'll be fine. I could come back to help you look tomorrow, if you want." She offered.

"I can't ask you do that." Rick said. Rebel nodded and rubbed her lips together. She was being pushed off, just like she had been in the real world.

"Okay well, good luck. I hope you find her." Rebel said, standing up straight.

She grabbed both her backpacks and crossed the highway with her flash light lighting the way. She climbed over one guard rail, walked over the road then scaled the other guard rail. She slowed her steps down so she could walk quietly through the woods. She put a hand over the front of the light to dull it, only letting a little bit of light to shine through.

Daryl followed after the girl who had given him his first hard on since the world died. He didn't follow her for that reason. He went after her so he would know where her camp was. He couldn't have her sneaking up on them in the night, stealing whatever supplies the group had found. She moved slowly and carefully, keeping her steps quiet. He kept his distance, making his steps as light as she did. A few minutes into the walk into the woods, she came to a stop, right in front of a big tent. that they had somehow missed on their walk. Daryl crouched down in a few bushes as she opened her tent and stepped in. She closed it up and turned the light off right away. Daryl started moving again, creeping in closer.

"Of course they don't want your help." He heard her mutter. "Who am I? No one. I don't even have a gun." She sighed hard and he thought he heard her flop down. There was some rustling around of fabric that made him wonder if she was getting undressed. " ' She ain't no one!' " He heard her mock him. "Well maybe you aren't anyone, asshole. Think you're all bad ass with your crossbow and tracking. " ' My name is Daryl and I trip into trunks of cars onto girls I don't know then act like it's their fault. I think I'm awesome because I have a crossbow.' " Daryl frowned and shook his head.

"Stupid bitch, out here talkin to herself." Daryl whispered as he listened to her complain about him.

"I fucking helped them look for the girl and forget to get food for myself. So stupid!" She snapped. Daryl backed away from her tent, reaching into one of the pockets of his cargo pants for the small, spare plastic bag he always kept here.

In the morning, Rebel woke with the sun. Inside her tent, the new sun light was starting to warm her and it always woke her. She sighed and pushed off her sleeping bag, sitting up stretch her arms over her head. Her shoulder popped and made her cringe. The blankets she had found and brought to her tent protected her from the hard ground but her body still missed her soft bed. Maybe she could get lucky and find an air mattress today. That would do her body some good.

Rebel stood up and started to strip down. Every other morning, if the streams around her were to low, Rebel would gave herself a bath of sorts, using baby wipes she had found and stocked up on. Sometimes, she would take her soaps down to the lake that sat just a short distance away and washed up completely in there. She would wash her hair, body, and clothes there. She didn't do the full body washes much to save on the soap plus, she knew there might come a time when she would need that lake water for drinking and didn't want it completely filled with soap when she did. Plus, full body dips in the lake wasn't always safe. What would happen if she was naked or partially naked in the water when a walker came back? Bathing like that was a luxury and she knew it.

After Rebel felt she was as clean as she could get, she dressed in a pair of fresh clothes then grabbed her bottle water, toothbrush, and toothpaste. She sighed as her stomach growled. Unzipping the tent, she promised her stomach that she would go looking for food back at the highway shortly. She had some jerky and protein bars with a few other things inside her tent, but she had had hope she'd find cereal or something like that. Even stale cereal was better than nothing. As the fresh, morning air hit her face, she had wonder, almost hope, that the group would still be there.

Rebel stepped outside and stopped short. Sitting by her fire pit was a bag filled with...meat? Leaning against the bag was a folded up note. She looked around and listened closely. There was nothing but the morning birds talking to her. She frowned and carefully walked over to the bag. She leaned down to snatch up the note as she soon as she could. She opened the ripped notebook paper to read,

Squirrel. Eat it.

It was writing in sloppy, rough handwriting. She brought the note to her chest and started looking around again. Who had found her?

_* So we decided to make her weaponless and rely on her ability to hide and be quiet as a different take on an OC. Alot of OCs here can fire weapons or have bats or something. We wanted Rebel different. So we decided she won't have weapons. *_


	3. Chapter 3

_* Please Review! We are so glad you guys like the direction we took Rebel. We were concerned that people won't like her or find her unrealistic since she is weaponless. Sorry it took so long, my husband, kids and I were on vacation.*_

Rebel clutched the bag back to her stomach as she backed up, whipping her head from side to side to see...well anything. Had one of the group followed her? Of course they did! And now that meant she had to move her camp away from, what she thought was, the prefect spot. She was close to a few streams and the lake, and her tent was right under a patch of trees that provided her with shade. Also, a nice breeze often went through her little area so yeah, it was prefect. A hell of a lot better than places she had stayed at, both now and before the world ended. Why she missed people, she was very uncomfortable with them knowing where she was slept at night.

Rebel looked down at the bag with a frown. She pulled it away from her body and started to stared at it as she stopped walking. It was meat, that much she could see. If the group members wanted to hurt her, would they really leave her meat with a note, telling her to eat it? No. Whoever it was would have attacked her last night, when they were there.

She looked up and towards the trees again. She held her breath for a few seconds and started to listen but all she heard was the usual morning sounds. There few a few bird cries, rustling the trees above her and the ever present casadas but nothing else. No walker sounds, no live human sounds, nothing. Rebel sighed but moved over to her fire pit. No use in letting meat go to waste. She had never had squirrel before but meat was meat and that was something she hadn't had in a long time. She sat on her knees, grabbed the matches she had brought out of her tent and started getting things ready for her to cook.

NRNRNR

When Rebel walked out of the woods and up towards the highway, it was still early morning. She could see the group was gathered around one of the cars that was parked in front of the old RV and they were talking. She bit down into her lower lip, climbed over the guard rail and started towards them. They didn't want her to join them as a group member but that didn't stop her from wanting to help them find the missing girl, besides, Rebel decided she was going to try and get as much time with them as she could. She wanted to soak up their voices so maybe after they gone and she was in the depths of loneliness, she could remember what humans sounded like and it might comfort her in some way.

" So it's settled than, we search as a group. Everyone needs a weapon. Remember to be quiet and keep your eyes open." Rebel heard Rick say as the little boy of the group turned and looked at her.

" Hey, can she come?" He asked, pointing at her.

The group looked back at Rebel who stopped walking and suddenly wondered if she had made a mistake. Daryl was frowning as his eyes raked down her. Shane shifted most of his weight to his right leg as he brought his shot gun up to rest against his shoulder. Others were clearly taking her inventory as they checked her out. She placed her hands flat on her stomach in an effort to keep them from shaking. The last thing she needed was to piss them off when they knew where she was camping. Rebel cleared her throat when no one said anything.

" I'd like to help." She spoke up. " If that's okay. Like I said yesterday, I know the area well and..."

" We got enough. Let's go. We're wastin daylight." Daryl huffed as he started across the littered highway. She frowned, watching how he moved around the cars, assuming everyone was following him and not looking back to check.

" Rebel, right?" Carol's voice pulled at her attention and made her look back at the other woman who was hurrying towards her.

" Yeah, that's right." She said.

" You're really willingly to help?" She asked.

" Yeah." Rebel said with a nod. " Of course. Just because the world ended doesn't mean I'm heartless. She's just a little girl."

" Thank you." Carol said with fresh tears in her eyes. " She's all I have left."

Daryl took the lead with Rick and Rebel behind him and the rest of the group in a single file line behind them. Rick asked her again for different hiding places and they checked every one Rebel could think of. They came upon a tent, checked it over then moved on into the woods. The group was starting to drag and everyone could feel it. The sun was high in the sky and Dale announced that it was just after noon. They stopped at a clearing with Rick getting ready to address them when church bells rang out.

" What the hell is that!" Glenn asked.

" That's right! I forgot about the old church! That's perfect for her to be at!" Rebel said with a smile.

" And you just forgot!" Daryl snapped, making her open her mouth to snap back but he took off running towards the sound.

Hope was surging through the group as they all ran and for once since the outbreak, Rebel found herself smiling more. Her chest felt light and free. Sophia would be there, she had to be, Rebel was sure of it. They would find the little girl and then...what? Her smile wavered as she ran. No, not yet. She wouldn't lose them yet. As the wind whipped past her face, cooling the sweat that had settled against her skin, Rebel refused to think about what would happen when they left.

And she didn't have to wonder about their departure long. The church was empty, save three walkers that were quickly put down. She waited in the back of the church as the group rested, walked around outside or prayed. She watched how Lori put her arms around Carol who was crying. She watched as Rick patted his son's shoulder and Daryl stared up at the wooden Jesus.

And it hit her, hard. So hard, she was stunned. She wanted to be apart of this group. She needed to be apart of them. They cared about each other. They watched after each other and that was something she had never had, not even when the world was alive. Sure, she didn't know them. Sure, Shane gave her a weird feeling and she could see tension between Andrea and Dale but over all, these had to be good people. They just had to be. Here they were, wasting their lives even more than was needed everyday, wasting time they could be spending looting, out looking for a little girl that Rebel was starting to believe might never be found. They cared and protected each other. This could be a group Rebel could stay with. She was, after all, so tired of being alone.

" What are you starin at?" Daryl bit out, bring her out of her thoughts and back into the present. She blinked in confusion. She hadn't even noticed that he had moved away from the front of the church. Daryl was frowning, as usually, and when she didn't answer him right away, Daryl snapped his fingers in front of her face. " Girl!" This time, she was frowning. She swiped her hand up and slapped his hand away from her face.

" What?" She asked, harshly.

" You need to wake up, pay the fuck attention to shit. You can't be off day dreamin about unicorns and puppies. Knock that shit off. You lookin to get your ass bit?" He asked with venom dripping from his voice. She blinked then gave her head a quick shake.

" I wasn't day dreaming." She defended.

" Whatever." He said before he started walking out of the church.

The group went back to the highway with Rebel tagging along and no one protesting against it. They trudged through the woods, up the bank and over the guardrail. They walked back to the RV and started making plans again. They looked over maps with Rebel trying to peer over everyone's shoulders until she noticed T-Dog leaning against the RV. He was sweating and looked like he was going to pass out at any moment. She blinked, looked back at the group then over to T-Dog again. She pulled back to go over to him.

" Hey, are you okay?" She asked. He tilted his head back and closed his eyes before he licked across his bottom lip.

" My arm hurts." He said. She looked down at the wrapped wound and frowned. She took a hold of his wrist, turned his arm and peered in closer at him. She brought her other hand up and let her fingers glide down the angry red lines just under his skin.

" This is infected." She said. Rebel looked up at T-Dog then over to the group. " Hey!" She called out, getting their attention. " His wound is infected. He needs some antibiotics." Rick came forward to look for himself. She pointed to the red lines as he leaned down for a closer look.

" Okay. We need to search the cars for any and all medicine." Rick said when he straighten up.

" Actually, I have a bunch of medicine at my camp. I could run and get him..." Rebel started but stopped when Daryl nudged her out of the way with a big bag in his hand.

" Here." He said to T-Dog while shooting her a look over his shoulder. " Merle had the clap. He's gotplenty of shit in here. We don't need anyone else's shit." Rebel frowned and wanted to snap back at him but held back. Would she take pills from a stranger?

' He's just protecting them.' She told herself. ' It's fine.'

The group decided to split up and search for Sophia, with Shane, Rick, and Carl going in one direction and the rest in another, leaving T-Dog and Dale at the RV. Rebel was going to tag along with the big group. Daryl had shot her a look when she started walking with them, a look she was trying to ignore. This wasn't about her and it wasn't about him. It was about finding a missing little girl and Rebel would help.

But by the middle of the day, they had found nothing but a few stray walkers and a woman on a horse who claimed Rick had sent her. Carl had been shot and without questioning, Lori had mounted the horse and let the woman gallop them away. Daryl was beyond pissed. Stress, worry, and fear was rolling through the group as they hurried back to the highway.

" I know the house that girl is talking about." Rebel spoke up after the events were explained to Dale and T-Dog. Daryl put his hands on his hips, glaring, again, at her with sweat beading on his face and wetting his hair. " I saw it once before I settled here. I didn't know there were people living there though. I mean, I was just passing by it and didn't really look to hard at it and..."

" We ain't got time for your ramlbin! Spit it out!" Daryl snapped.

" Daryl, calm down." Dale said quickly. The hunter's eyes darted over to the old man then back at Rebel. " Can you show us how to get there?" Dale asked Rebel gently.

" Yeah, I can. It's real easy." She said.

" She ain't comin." Daryl interrupted. Dale sighed offered her a small smile before frowning at Daryl. "We don't know her and we ain't brin her around when one of ours is sick."

" She's done nothing but help us, Daryl." Dale said.

" And we don't know why type of people we are going to find at that house." Andrea interjected. " We don't know if they will accept us or not. They might turn us away because we have too many people with us if we bring her." Dale's eyebrows went up as he shook his head.

" And you really think adding one more person to our group will make them turn us away?" He asked.

" I'm just saying...we should go as our group and check them out. If they seem okay with us than maybe we can come back for her." Andrea said. Rebel sighed and rolled her eyes.

" I didn't say I'd go with you anyway." She found herself snapping quickly, making everyone look at her. "I said I'd show you, not go. Pay attention."

It was Andrea's turn to raise her eyebrows as a look of shock went over her pale face. She scoffed, almost snorting, like she couldn't believe anyone would talk back to her. Rebel felt her anger start to climb. Who were these people, anyway, that they thought she needed them. As far as Rebel could tell, they needed her. She was the one that had showed them all the hiding places Sophia could have been using. Yeah, she didn't need them half as much as they had needed her. Maybe she had been wrong about thinking she wanted to be apart of them. Maybe she had been wrong in thinking that they care.

" I beg your pardon?" Andrea asked as she crossed her arms over her chest and let most of her weight fall on her right leg. That movement almost pushed Rebel over the edge. She knew that stance. She had seen it thousands of times during her life, whenever someone thought they were above her, only now, Rebel didn't have to put up with it. She could walk away from them because they weren't her co-workers, her boss, her teacher or foster parents she had been forced to live with. No, she didn't need this shit anymore.

" I don't want to go with you, how is so hard to understand about that?" Rebel snapped.

" Are you saying you'd rather be alone, by yourself with no weapons, then with us, a group with food and weapons?" Andrea snapped back.

" Yes. I have been doing fine on my own without you so fuck off." Rebel bit out. " Find the house yourself."

That was it. She was done. She was fine. She had been making it on her own and she knew it. She was wrong before when she had thought she might want to join them. She didn't need people. She didn't anyone, not before and not now and she would prove it to herself. She stormed across the group, ready to go back to her camp site when she realized she was coming up on Daryl who was staring at her. She steeled herself, her hands closing into tight fists at her sides. She sent him a glare that matched all the ones he had been sending her way and as she passed him, she made sure she shoulder checked him as hard as she could. She would ignore the sharp pain that stabbed through her when she hit his hard bicep with her shoulder.

" What the hell?" Rebel heard him say as he stumbled to the side. She had been lucky and she knew it. If he had been ready for her, there would have been no way she would have moved him. But he had underestimated her, like so many people in her life had. No, she didn't need that now.

" Miss!" She heard Dale call out.

" Let her go." Andrea was next. " If she wants to be alone, let her."

" Got enough mouths to feed." Daryl said as he watched her weave quickly around the cars.

Her outburst had been a surprise and they didn't need a loose canyon like her around them anyway. They had Shane and he was unstable enough. Daryl frowned, seeming unable to look away from her. As the group started to talk about the events, if they should leave the highway with Sophia still out there or if they should stay, Daryl watched as Rebel hopped over the guardrail and descended the bank. He watched until she completely disappeared in the trees. He had to admit it, he wondered about her. How the hell had she made it this long, alone, with no weapons, no way to defend herself or hunt? How the hell was she still alive when they had lost so many already? How...Daryl gave himself a shake and turned away from the woods at the same time he started to rub his chin with one of his index fingers. What was he doing? He didn't have to wonder about her and he wasn't going too. He didn't have time. There were other things that needed his attention and some stupid girl he had found himself trapped into a trunk of a car was not one of them.

At least, that's what he told himself as he drove his bike in the direction of the house the strange girl on the horse had given them. With the wind whipping by, cooling his skin and shifting through his hair, he told himself again and again that he didn't need to think about the young woman in the woods, the young woman who had managed to turn him on and make him miss sex.

Sex hadn't been a big part of Daryl's life, not when he was in his teens or a young man in his 20's and thirties and certainly not now that he was walker filled world. Yeah, he liked sex, what man didn't? Yeah, he took it when he came his way, which wasn't often, but he didn't need it and hadn't really thought about it since he had been fighting for his life and the life of the group members. It wasn't important now and before, well there had been to much shit that came along with having sex. Girls wanted things after they got off, things Daryl couldn't, and didn't want, to give them. Things like cuddling, emotions, and sweet words. Those things were not things Daryl understood or knew. They wanted to be naked and that was not something Daryl could allow himself to be, not his marks and scars. No. No one saw those, not then and not now.

" So what if she got me hard." Daryl muttered to himself as he drove. " That don't mean shit. Wasn't bout her. It happen cuz I need to jerk it."

Which wasn't something Daryl did often. Sure, when he was a teen, he was like other guys and couldn't keep his hands off his dick but his dad and Merle had solved that problem for him. They had walked in on Daryl when he thought he was alone. They had made fun of him for jerking off, made fun his dick. They had called small, sad, and pathetic. Now, as a grown man, when the need hit Daryl, their words came back to haunt him. They acted like a ice cold bucket of water, putting out any sexual desire that might bestirring inside him. Were most men jerked off once a day, Daryl did it once or twice every other week. The last time he had touched himself, the group had been in the CDC and Daryl had been to drunk to care about the taunts that haunted him. All he had cared about at that time was getting off then sleeping. Yeah, that was what he needed now, that was why he had gotten hard when Rebel was under him. Because he was due, overdue, for a self inflicted orgasm and as soon as he was alone, he would handle his business and wash her out of his system.


	4. Chapter 4

_* Please Review! We are so glad everyone likes Rebel so much! __**Gemma:**__ I never throw Daryl in with a girl right away and I don't think I have ever made him a sex maniac. I don't listen to what Norman says and try and make my Daryl as close to how Norman plays him and wants him to be as I can. __**EnglishPoetL**__ I'm glad you like it. Yeah, i hate when authors do that do. Usually it's very young people that don't have a real grip on real relationships between people or can't think of how things would really happen in the real world. I always take my stories slow because I think it makes the story better and more real. __**Thank you to everyone else for**_** reading!***\

Daryl set up his tent a little ways from the group, in the back of the Greene's farm. As he threaded the poles through the sides and then top of the tent, he found his mind wandering back to Rebel and his eyes would start to scan the woods...for what? Her? No. She won't follow them and he didn't care if she did. She showed up, they'd turn her away. Like he said, they didn't need another mouth to feed. The group was too big now as it was.

But still, he wanted to know how she had managed to live this long alone and with no way to defend herself. Daryl squinted and squatted down, stabbing the pole of the tent into ground. Sweat was coating his hair, again. There wasn't a day were he wasn't covered in sweat anymore. Daryl frowned before sending his tongue over his bottom lip.

" She's fuckin lyin." He said to himself. He huffed loudly, pushing out a chest full of air as he grabbed at the pole and gave it a quick shake to make sure it would hold. He stood up and put his hands on his hips, shaking his head. He turned so he was facing the woods and started scanning it again. " Just ain't no way."

Quickly, he unloaded his things from one of the cars they had, set up his cot and blankets then grabbed his cross bow. He stalked over to Dale, announced he was going hunting for their dinner then disappeared into the woods. He was headed in one direction and only one. And it wasn't towards her camp. He wasn't marching straight towards her and he didn't want to watch her and see how she lived. It wasn't his concern.

TWDTWDTWD

Rebel shook her head as she inspected the berries on the bush she had found just a few days beforehand. She would only pick a few a day that way, she didn't pick the bush clean and she could have fresh fruit every day. Oh how she missed fresh things, fruits, vegetables, bread. Rebel briefly closed her eyes to shake her head again and breath out.

" Stop it." She said when she opened her eyes again. Her mouth watered at the thought of warm, freshly baked bread. Nothing beat holding bread fresh from the oven and breathing in it's scent. "I am so sad."

Never in her life would she had ever thought she could miss something as small as bread. She dropped a few of the berries into the bowl she had brought with her then decided she had enough for her lunch that day. She stood up and groaned, feeling her back tighten. She exhaled again and just stared into the trees. Biting into the right side of her lips, she listened and when she was sure she was still alone, still walker-free, she started headed towards her campsite.

" Okay, I am going eat then go looking for that girl." Daryl heard Rebel said as he silently followed behind her.

' Why the hell she gonna look for Sophia?' He asked himself.

" That will fucking show him. Stupid dickhead. ' She ain't comin!' Like I wanted to go with them anyway. Right, Murphy? We like it being just us two." Daryl frowned, at both her horrible impression of him and because he wondered who the hell Murphy was. " Oh man, okay. I am pathetic. It was one thing when I started talking to the invisible man in my head but now I'm talking out loud to him."

' This bitch is crazy.' Daryl thought.

" Wouldn't I just freak out if someone answered me though?" Rebel continued talking. " Come on, Murph! I know you can hear me!" She yelled out, hunching her shoulders up right away and whipping in all directions as if she was looking for something.

' Shut the fuck up!' Daryl wanted to snarl as his eyes quickly darted around too to make sure no walkers were close. If they heard her talking and yelling, he'd be force to reveal his presence to her in order to...save her? No, not to save her, to save himself from having to watch another live person get eaten by an undead fuck. When Rebel seemed sure she was alone, she took a breath and loosed her shoulders again.

" Holy shit, I wonder how the MacManus twins would handle the walkers. I bet they would laugh at them at first, until they really understood what they were." Rebel continued.

' Who the fuck are the MacManus twins?' Daryl wondered as he continued following her.

" I bet Connor would be bitten first. No wait, Murphy. No...I don't know. That's actually a hard question. Okay, let's say Connor gets bit first, would Murphy be able to put him down? No," Rebel shook her head. "He would take care of Connor until he died. When he came back as a walker, that's when Murphy would put him down and I think the same would go for Connor if Murphy got bit. Oh...how sad would it be if one of them did get bit!" She explained.

Daryl continued to follow behind her, staying back far enough and watching his steps carefully so that he didn't draw attention to himself. He paid attention to her and the woods around them, being sure that nothing would or could sneak up on them. He'd be damned before he let himself get bit by walker when he was stalking a girl. Not that he was stalking Rebel. He just wanted to know what her deal was and that was it. Well that was what it started out as, that he just wanted to know how she lived but then she said she would look for Sophia so he wanted to know why. And then she started talking to herself so now he was really curious about her. Kind of...not really.

Daryl followed Rebel until she reached her campsite. He crouched down behind a bush and just watched her as she worked. She added another log to her fire then sat down with her back to the tent with her bowl in between her legs and a fork in her hand. She swept the back of her hand over her hair to push it out of her eyes then started to use her fork to smash up the berries she had found. When she was seemed happy with her work, she set the bowl on the ground then reached for a plastic bag she had sitting out, filled with white stuff. She sprinkled a bit of powder on the berries, stirred it for a few more minutes.

" Holy shit, this is going to be good." Rebel said with a smile.

She sealed the bag back up then forked out some of the mixture she had made. Daryl watched as she scooped the berries up and brought it to her mouth. Her tongue darted out to sample what she had before she almost shoved it into her mouth. Her eyes shut right away and she almost moaned out at the taste. Daryl felt himself twitch inside his pants seconds before he started to harden up again.

" Holy shit, this is good. What the hell am I going to do when I run out of sugar?" Rebel asked herself when she opened her eyes again. Slowly she ate her berries and sugar, wanting the mixture to last as long as she could make it but before long, it was gone. She sighed deeply and stared into the bowl with disappointment playing over her features. " Well, that was good while it lasted. Now back to the road." She grabbed the sugar bag, pushed herself up and faced her tent. After she stored her things safely inside her light green home and grabbed her two backpacks, she turned again and started back for the road.

' I gotta follow her for sure now. I gotta make sure she don't take the shit we left for Sophia.' Daryl told himself as he followed her again. Yeah, that was why he was continuing to follow her.

Rebel reached the highway in no time. She hurried up the bank and slowly looked around. She rubbed her slightly chapped lips together and sighed when she saw that they were gone. There was no sign that the group had even been there save two bags of things sitting on top of a car with a note for the little girl. She shook her head and promised herself that after she looked through a few of the cars, she would go off and look for Sophia.

She opened the door to a red car and pulled out the bag she saw in the backseat. She quickly went through it, pulling out the shirts she found there and pants. They were a few sizes to big for her frame but she figured beggars can't be choosers. She needed to stock up on as much clothes and blankets as she could find...well anything really but with winter coming, she needed blankets and clothes as much as she needed food.

" I need to figure out a way to get these water containers off this truck and back to my tent." Rebel said as she stared at the huge water coolers. " How the hell am I going to do that though? These things are heavy. Maybe I can find a sledge or a wagon."

For the next hour, Rebel went through the cars, one by one, filling her backpack with everything she found and could use to eat. She climbed back over the guard rail and headed home, ready to ditch her things and go looking for Sophia. She hurried through the woods, her mind milling over ways to get the water from the truck to her tent.

Over the next few hours, Rebel searched the woods, never calling out for Sophia because she had learned early on to stay as quiet as she could. Her earlier outburst had been a rare thing and something she was still silently yelling at herself for doing. Usually, Rebel was quiet when she was in the woods or her tent but there were times were she just needed to hear a human voice...even if it was just hers.

She looked everywhere she could think of. She searched large bushes that a young girl could hide under. She looked up into the trees because she, herself, had been known to climb a tree as high as she could get to hide from a walker or two. If she stayed close to the trunk, didn't move and stayed quiet, they weren't even know she there and would just pass by her. They never looked up if there was no sound to get their attention.

And while she looked, so did Daryl. He watched her and looked for Sophia. Daryl had always been good at watching for two things at once. No matter what he was doing when he was a boy and young teen, he had had to watch his back and his front. His dad was always waiting to try and catch the younger Dixon off guard and a few times he had, that is, until Daryl got bigger and stronger than his dad. But even then, the habit of being watchful had been so ingrained in Daryl that he just continued to watch everything.

Daryl stayed following her until she decided to turn back and head to her tent. There was no sign of Sophia anywhere and it was already getting to be the late afternoon. Daryl needed to quickly hunt and bring his group some meat. And maybe Rebel too. He had noticed how skinny, almost fragile looking she seemed. He wasn't surprised. Despite how much he hunted, he had noticed members of his group losing weight, himself included. Before the end of the world, Daryl knew he had had a small belly on him and now, his chest and stomach were flat, both from less to eat and the fact that he was running more than he ever had in his life. His arms were toned from carrying the cross bow around for hours on end but he would never consider himself in shape, not in the way most women liked their men. Who could now-a-days? Not that he cared or thought about how she might like a man to look.

When night fell, Daryl emerged from the woods with a few rabbits and squirrels hanging on a string off his waist and belt. Some were skinned and some weren't. As he walked towards the small campfire in the center of his group, the small dead body swung and brushed against his leg, slotting his pant with drops of blood. He was tired and his arms were aching. He just wanted to eat and sleep.

He sat down the fire while Carol readied the meat for them. She was holding a brave face, even after he told her that he hadn't found her daughter. The meat was mixed together with rice and cooked with some salt and pepper Daryl had found. He ate his dinner slowly while staring into the fire and thinking. Not about Rebel...no. He wasn't thinking about how pure pleasure had went over her face when she was eating the berries. He wasn't thinking about how her tongue had gathered the food off her fork or how it slipped across her lips when she was done eating and damn sure wasn't thinking about the moan that had come out of her. He wasn't wondering if she moaned liked that when she was under a man who was thrusting between her thighs or was the moan deeper, most lust filled. No, he didn't wonder about any of that.

Daryl frowned when his earlier want came rushing back to him. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees before he shot his eyes down to his crotch then back up to see if anyone was paying him any attention. He just needed to check and make sure his dick was noticeable to anyone else. It was standing to attention, demanding that he touch it since he hadn't do it earlier. Damn thing was more of a pain than anything to him now. Why couldn't it just stay soft? There was no getting away from it now. He was almost painfully hard behind his zipper and he knew he was going to have to handle his business before he got any rest that night, not that he could get to rest for a while. There was something he needed to do other than jerk himself off.

When Daryl had managed to relax himself enough that he could stand without a tent appeared from his pants. He handed his dish to Carol, nodded his goodnight then hurried to his tent. He needed to get inside, get the job done then finish out his work for the day. It won't take long and he knew it. He could handle himself and be done in a matter of minutes. For that time frame, he would think of nothing else but the pleasure he was feeling. He won't think about the guilt that he knew would come afterwards. He won't remember the laughter or mocking taunts he had heard for years. He won't think about Rebel. She won't be the star of his fantasy.

And while the orgasm rocked his body, he panted and just let himself enjoy it as he squeezed his eyes shut tight. He kept his eyes shut as he willed his heart to slow it's pace afterwards and while he cleaned his hands and the head of his penis. He refused to acknowledge his dad's voice in the back of his head while he tucked himself back into his pants and zipped up. He refused to acknowledge that it had been Rebel's face, peering up at him as she fit her lips over him and swallowed him deep. No, it wasn't her, couldn't be. Yeah, he had wondered about her but watching her today had given him all the answers he needed about how she lived and he didn't need anymore.

TWDTWDTWD

Rebel stretched her arms above her head as she stood in the middle of her tent the next morning. She yawned, tilted her head to one side then the next before she dropped her arms down and twisted slowly. She gave herself a quick shake then listened...Nothing. She unzipped her tent stepped out and jumped, letting out a small yelp in surprise. Sitting on the other side of the fire was two of the big plastic containers of water that she had seen in the water truck. She swallowed hard and slowly started around the fire, looking around carefully. Just like the morning before, there was a bag of meat sitting by the water containers along with a few small furs and a note.

' Rabbit and squirrel. Eat. Line your clothes with the furs, helps with the winter.' The words were written in the same, small, sloppy handwriting as the other note. Again, she held the note her stomach and looked around with a frown.


	5. Chapter 5

_* Please Review! Sorry, my laptop got a ton of viruses and need a major_ overall!*

On the group's third day at the farm, Daryl was in the woods again, looking for Sophia with Rebel on his mind. He wasn't sure why she had set up camp in his head and he wasn't happy about it. Since hauling a few water jugs down from the highway to her camp sight and leaving her the meat and fur, two days beforehand, he hadn't been back to see her. He was surprised at how hard it had been for him to not go back to her. He was surprised at his interest in knowing how she lived and he decided to completely throw himself into finding the young girl. He needed too or Rebel was going to piss him off more. He knew if he didn't busy himself, he'd find his way back to her camp. NOT because he found himself attracted to her but because of how she lived with no weapons...

To his surprise the woods opened up to a large, partially cleared field. Sitting in the middle of the field was an old house that had long been abandoned, even before the walkers had rose up. There were no glass windows left in the house, the front door was hanging haphazardly on a hinge. Paint was peeling and completely off some of the boards on the house. The bushes around it were overgrown and there was debris scattered around the house from the partially caved in roof. With a frown and a stern look on his face, Daryl grabbed at the strap of his cross bow to swing it around to his front. He slowed his steps down, making sure he was as quiet as he could be.

Daryl entered the house from the front, pointing his crossbow towards the stairs first before ducking into the room right off to his right to give it a once over. He crept over to the kitchen area, swept his eyes through it to make sure it was walker free then moved back open area by the front door. With sweat starting to bead across his upper lip, he held his breath briefly so he could listen. If there was a walker in the house, he'd hear it before it knew he was there.

Shuffling from the upstairs pulled at Daryl's attention and made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He let his breath go quietly before he started up the stairs. One at a time he took them, keeping his steps a light as possible. He wanted to sneak up on whatever it was making the noise. Walker, animal or person. He wanted to take down the walker before it saw him, kill the animal for dinner for the group and if need be, kill the person.

Daryl's hands tighten on his cross bow as he reached the center of the staircase. His eyes squinted down as he continued the climb. The stairs were strong, stronger than they looked. Part of the railing had fallen down years ago and the wallpaper was almost completely gone from the walls but the stairs were good. Daryl lifted his head and took a deep breath. There was no smell of rot that usually came with a walker. In fact, there was no smell at all but that didn't mean he got to relax. If it was an older walker, a more dried up one, the putrid smell might not be as noticeable.

His biceps twitched then tensed. His sense sharpen as he located which of the rooms from the upstairs the noise was coming from. It was the room directly across from the top of the stairs. More shuffling reached him as well as...a sigh? Walkers do not sigh and neither do animals. That only left one other option. Daryl reached the top of the stairs at the same time the noise maker walked out...and screamed and jumped.

" What are you doin?!" Daryl snapped at Rebel as he lowered his weapon down.

" What am I doing? What are you doing, sneaking up on people!" She snapped as she leaned back against the door frame behind her. She shook her head and sighed.

" Answer me." He said, sharply.

" I saw this house and thought I'd check it out. I mean, if I was a kid, I'd come here and hide, you know?" She asked. Daryl was mad but he couldn't deny what she was saying. When he saw the house, he had been thinking the same thing. If the house was walker-free, it would be perfect for Sophia to hide in.

" You find anythin?" Daryl asked. Rebel shook her head again, standing up straight.

" I didn't find her but there is something in the kitchen."

She started forward and before he knew it, she was passing him, brushing against the bare skin of his arm as she did so. Shock shot through his system and almost froze him to the spot. No one touched him. No one. Ever. He didn't like being touched. He didn't like anyone to see or touch his skin, not with his marks and scars. And he damn sure didn't like her touching him, even if her skin was soft. Even if he had liked the feel of her under him...Wait, what? No, he didn't. He frowned at the turn of his thoughts. No, he didn't like the feel her under him. No, he hadn't been thinking about it, at all.

" Daryl?" He spun around at the sound of his name on her lips. She was standing in the center of the stair case, blinking up at him and he quickly realized that she had been talking to him but he had been so consumed by his thoughts, he hadn't heard a word of it.

" What?" He asked.

" I said I think she or someone might have been here and I asked you if you wanted to look at what I found." She said. Daryl gave himself a shake before he started down the stairs, breezing past her quickly, too quickly actually. He hit her on accident and would have sent her over the missing part of the railing had she not quickly reached out and grabbed him at his arm, touching him again. " Watch it, ass!" She snapped as she righted herself. Daryl looked at her then glanced over at the missing railing.

" Sorry." He muttered before he gently shook her hands off him and turned to continue down the stairs. His hands tighten on his crossbow. Did he really just tell her he was sorry?

" The kitchen is right off the front door and stairs." She said from behind him.

Once inside the area that used to be the kitchen and dining room, Rebel showed him the large cabinet she had found with the opened cans of food. He crouched down and picked one up. He brought it up to his face and inhaled quickly. She was right. Someone had been living there, hiding and eating the canned food. He looked over the small space.

" Don't think it's her." Daryl said.

" How do you know?" Rebel asked. " I mean, someone has been here." Daryl nodded, standing up but not turning around to face her.

" Yeah, looks that way but it ain't her. She didn't have food on her when she took off and this house was empty before the walkers rose up. Whoever was stayin here brought this canned shit with them."

Finally, he turned and looked down at her. It suddenly hit him that he was, in fact, looking down at her. She was short and he could tell that if she stood against him, she'd only reach the center of his chest. Not that she'd ever have a reason to stand against him. Not that he'd ever have a reason to want her to stand next to or against him.

" Okay, so it's not her than and we are back to square one." Daryl's head tilted at her words. We?

" Ain't no we. It's you and it's me and mine and you ain't apart of mine." He snapped before he stalked out of the room.

" He's suck a dick." Rebel whispered to herself. " I never said I wanted to be apart of yours." She said out loud.

" Good, cuz you ain't." Daryl threw back before walking out of the house.

" I know, you made that clear. Before today." She said, while following him.

Rebel stopped walking when she across the small patch of cement by the front door and stepped out onto the grass. She crossed her arms over her chest and transferred some of her weight to her left leg as she watched the hunter as he kept his back to her. He looked right. He looked left. His shoulders sagged like he sighed. She tilted her head as watched as he settled the cross bow against his back then brought his hands up to his face.

" Sophia!" He yelled out.

With his accent being as thick as it was, the girl's name came out, heavy on the PH sound. He turned to the left, giving Rebel his left side profile. He called out Sophia's name again with his hands cupped around his mouth. When only a few crows answered Daryl, he turned again, presenting his back to her. He dropped his arms and walked over to the flowers that had grown over an old iron fence. She continued to watch him silently as he crouched down. He reached out and gently cupped a flower with his right hand. Rebel sighed and dropped her arms down. She started to chew on her bottom lip. Nervously, she took a step towards him, then another and another until she was close enough to his back that she could reach out and touch him, if she wanted too. Not that she wanted too. Not that she missed the feel of a man's strong back and arms.

" Carol will like this." Daryl said, almost to himself. He nodded and carefully picked the flower from it's stem.

" Is she okay?" Rebel asked.

" She's fine." He said as he stood up. " She's alright. We all alright." He said while his fingers glided over the petals of the freshly picked flower, drawing Rebel's eyes down to them.

Her heart quicken at the sight and her breath hitched. Would he touch her that carefully? Would he be that gentle if his fingers were caressing her skin? Would he let them slide down her arms and...Rebel shook herself and forced her eyes up to his face. Which was a mistake. Even though his hair was matted with sweat and his face was dirt streaked, Rebel could tell how attractive Daryl Dixon was. He had squint lines around his eyes and small creases lining the sides of his lips from frowning. His cheeks were flushed from the heat and his dirt flannel shirt was clinging to his upper body, giving her a good view just how built up he was. Rebel cleared her throat as heat started to pump through her veins. She didn't want this man. She wanted a man but not this man. No.

Even though she was sure that sex with Daryl would be hard and animal like and that appealed to everything woman in her.

" How is Carl?" Was that her voice that was on the high pitch in sound? She rolled her eyes and cleared her throat again. " He was hurt?"

" He's fine." Daryl said, dropping his hand from the flower. He frowned again as he looked at her. "You don't need to be worrin none bout us. You worry bout you." It was Rebel's turn to frown and her anger stirred. Who was he to snap at her like that?

" I'm just trying to be nice." Rebel shot back.

" You need to wake up and look around you, girl." Daryl started. " The world ain't the same it was when you were drivin around in your little pink car, drinking tea and eating candy. Ain't no one nice anymore and there ain't no need for it."

" There's always a need for it and one of you is nice. One member of your group has been bring me shit every night so fuck you and your ' Ain't no need for niceness!" She finished up, using her version of his voice. It stunned him to hear her take on a rough, southern accent. He put his hands on his hips as they stared at each other for a few tense seconds. " You are just such a dick." She spun her heel and stormed away from him and into the woods. Daryl frowned after her.

Rebel wanted to snap and complain as she hurried towards her camp but knew better than to be loud in the woods. Why did he have to be so mean? She wasn't asking to join them but she couldn't help but wonder about the other living people she had found. And one of them wondered about her too or they won't help her. They won't have brought her water, meat and the furs.

" Fuck him." She whispered.

She stopped walking at a clearing. She tilted her head up towards the sky and closed her eyes, feeling the sun heating her skin. Somewhere around her a bird called out. A small breeze blew in and kissed along her face. She shook her head to herself. She shouldn't let him get to her. There were to many dangers in the world now for her to let one cranky man get under her skin. She sighed and placed her hands low on her hips. Her finger tips brushed the hand of the doll she had found laying in the woods. Rebel opened her eyes, pulled the doll out of her back pocket and brought it around to her front. She stared down at it before she sighed again. This had to be Sophia's doll and that meant she needed to make a trip to the farm house she had seen before and knew where Daryl's group was.


End file.
